Cigarette Burns
by fronzy
Summary: All Blake wants to do is forget about her past and live a calm, quite life. But, she knows that's a dream that will never come true. After a familiar face manages to find her, she's forced to live life on the run. Cigarettes being one of the only things that calms her, she's met with a fiery blonde outlaw, who doesn't smoke but always seems to carry around a spare lighter... /AU
1. Prologue

**Heyo, lovelies! Welcome to my first uploaded RWBY fanfic /cheers. So let me let me set the basics of the AU this fic takes place in. It is a Modern!AU (no hightech weapons, dust, any sort of technology like that) but Faunus and semblance do exist. Semblance still has the same qualities as in canon, it's just not used as often because most people are not fighters/warriors (but could be used when engaging in a fight). This fic also contains certain aspects of V3, so I suggest finishing up V3 if you do choose to read on. Adding on to the disclaimers, there is also Brother!Adam (to Blake) and will normally follow Blake's perspective (excluding part 1 of the prologue).**

 **Phew, sorry about that huge chunk of info, but it needed to be stated heh.**

 **Anyways, without further ado, let's start! B)**

* * *

Prologue, Part 1: Fire

"You don't understand, Ruby!"

An enraged and violent girl snapped at her younger sister, as the fifteen year old girl shook in fear and horror, staring at who was once her easy-going and playful seventeen year old half-sibling. The furious blonde-haired girl punched the younger girl's wooden desk, the contact strong enough to send stray splinters flying back. With the older girl's back facing her sister, she breathed in and out sharply through her nose, leaving her fist in the same position. She endured the pain that now pumped madly up her toned arm, not saying a word. Blood began to leak out of her knuckles.

 _She didn't care._

"Y- Yang!" Her dark haired sibling screamed out in concern, addressing her sister by her first name. Her hand was wrapped tightly around the silver cross that hung around her neck, the girl did that when she was afraid. There was a loud silence between them, Yang's breathing still ragged. The blonde girl slowly turned her tense form to face her younger sister, shooting blood-shot daggers into Ruby's tear-filled silver eyes. Yang took a deep breath, attempting to calm herself down before speaking again.

"Ruby, listen," she started, her baby sister hesitantly wiping the tears that formed with the sleeve of her crimson zip-up hoodie. They met eyes once more, "This isn't about you. It's never been about you. I need to do this, that's all there is to it." Yang clenched both of her hands into fists, ignoring the pain flowing through her arm. Large droplets of blood dripped from her hand, staining the old, wooden floorboards.

 _She didn't care._

The taller girl closed the wide distance between each other and placed her bleeding hand onto her younger sister's petite shoulder. She clasped it lightly, not sure if she could trust her own strength. Ruby froze in place, her face soaked with worry and fear at what was to come. Yang's tiresome red-tinted-purple eyes piercing silver, "I have to find her, Ruby. I'm sick and tired of waiting in the dark for a miracle to happen. I need to know." Ruby's eyes widened at her sister's words, tears flowing down her cheek as she began to quietly sob. She couldn't stop sobbing.

"Yang, you c-can't just l-leave me," Ruby's soft voice cracked under the pressure of her heaving chest. Pausing for a second, her older sister pulled her into a well-needed embrace. Ruby's arms tucked in close to her body, Yang wrapped her sturdy arms around the shaking girl, letting her bury her face in the blonde girl's shoulder. The blood from her hand started to seep into the red sweater her sister wore, dyeing it a darker shade of crimson.

 _She didn't care._

"Ruby... sis," Yang hushed the younger girl's sobs as her good hand ran through the reddish-black mess of hair she held in her arms. She heard the younger girl sniffle a bit against the blonde girl's baggy, oversized heather-gray sweater before she bobbed her head up to look at her older sister.

"I've made my decision already, I have to go."

Ruby's grip on the gray sweater slowly loosened and she backpedaled away from her sister, her body suddenly feeling ill.

"Ruby, this isn't goodbye. I will see you again. Please don't hate me, okay?"

The dark-haired girl's face mirrored pain and despair, her shaking hand still clasping her silver cross necklace. Yang slowly walked over to the beat-up orange backpack that was sleeping on the floor, and gently slipped it on. Her black high-top clad feet trudged towards the door to exit her sister's room. She grabbed the metal nob with her undamaged hand and turned to look back at Ruby, who was stiff with grief and eyes focused on the floor. She didn't look up at Yang.

"I'll see you around, sis."

Yang forced a smile and when she got no response, she left the quiet room. She shut the wooden door and made her way to exit the cabin, her footsteps creaking the floorboards underneath her. When she reached the outside, it was pouring rain, the mucky weather surrounding the stressed-out girl. Her blonde eyebrows furrowing, she began to walk away from the house. The older girl finally decided to take notice to the injury on her right hand, some blood still dripping down the now rose-red soaked hand. Yang continued to walk, biting her lip at both the physical and emotional pain that flooded her.

This was the right thing for her to do. She needed to do this.

She held her hurt fist in her left hand as tears began to run down her hot face. Her sobs became louder and louder as she continued to drag her feet, one step at a time.

 _She cared too much._

* * *

Prologue, Part 2: Smoke

"I don't think you understand what you're doing, Blake."

A stern and murderous man stated as a raven-haired girl let out a pained scream as her body slammed against the sturdy trunk of a nearby tree. The town around them was burning up, most of the buildings and structures in ablaze. She panted heavily as pain seeped in and coursed throughout her body, as the girl attempt to use her now weak arms to pull herself up. That action quickly failed as a heavy object smacked her back, causing her arms collapse as her crippled figure fell back onto the dirt. Heavy black boots laced with crimson-red soles strided over and obscured her vision. The figure then bent down, roughly grabbed a fistful of onyx-coloured hair and yanked the girl's head up to face him with his glove-clad hand. The seventeen year-old girl shrieked in agony, her arms powerless to stop the twenty-five-year old man's abusive nature. Her squinted citrine eyes peered at the man's white mask in disgust.

"We had a deal: for you to not try and run away anymore. And what do you do? Exactly that. Are you happy with yourself?" The man demanded, his voice thick with grim. The girl's breathing was heavy, overwhelmed by the pain pumping throughout her skull and the thick smoke that was slowly creeping closer.

"T-that deal is off, Adam. I-I don't want t-to do this a-anymore," Blake panted, her shaking ribbon-clad arm struggling to grab the man's sturdy grip to let go of her hair.

"That's not what I asked, sister," Adam gruffed, letting go of the girl's silky black hair and then proceeded to kick her in the stomach, her black-and-white clothed body slamming once more into the oak tree. Blake cried out, coughing up blood that splattered onto the ground and dripped down the sides of her mouth.

Adam walked coolly towards his younger sister's near-paralyzed body, running his large hand through his spiked red hair and over one of his black bull horns. The smoke that surrounded the girl's brother added to his menacing and intimidating look. Blake's body pleaded for her to remain motionless, but she ignored its cry and cocked her head up at her brother.

"A-Adam, all this killing... it isn't even for us anymore, for the Faunus. I-it's for yourself! What point at you trying to make by dropping bombs on innocents and destroying their town?!" Blake's winded and cracked voice demanded, the taste of iron coating her tongue. Adam kicked Blake's stomach again, which was hard enough to make her cough up more crimson liquid.

"That's a real easy question, sister," he arrogantly smirked, "Simply for fun." The man began to pace around the raven-haired girl's beat-up body with his hand on his chin in thought. "Times are hard, Blake. If you have the power to make them easier for yourself, why wouldn't you use it? You see, the White Fang is now the most feared organization in all of Remnent. The humans now know damn well we won't be running away with our tails between our legs anymore. Why? Because of your older brother of course! This was all my doing! Because of me, we're winning! And if I can have a little fun while making a difference, well, where's the problem with that? I've done what you've always wanted!"

"This isn't what I wanted though, Adam! You're the one who doesn't understand!" Blake screamed out, her amber eyes reflecting the blazing flames behind him. She didn't want to hear another word of her old brother's clinical nonsense. The bull Faunus stopped dead in his tracks, and turned to face the pained voice in curiousity.

"I-I don't want mass murders! I don't want burnings or tortures! I just want to be _heard!_ " Hot tears ran thickly down Blake's dirtied and bruised face in anger.

"Stop trying to run away from something you helped do!" Adam snapped back, ignoring his sister's statement. The fire around them grew dangerously bigger, the smoke now causing both Blake and Adam to cough as it snuck its way into their lungs. The bull Faunus looked steadily around at the scene. "You're the only one that gives me problems, Blake. And I'm damn sick and tired of it!"

Blake's eyes followed her brother's movements as he turned away from her, making her regard the intricate white designs and red-rose pattern on the back of his jet-black tailcoat. He stared out at the flames that blazed through the once-virtuous countryside town, speaking out his thoughts in a hushed tone.

"You're not worth the trouble anymore."

Blake's golden eyes widened at what slipped out of Adam's mouth. Despite the noise of crackling fire around them, she was still able to catch what her older brother had murmured with her exposed cat Faunus ears. The bull Faunus suddenly spun around, grabbed his sister by the dirtied yellow bandanna she wore around her neck, and yanked her up so her standing form was leaning against the tree.

"You heard me, Blake! You want to run so badly? Then go! Run! I'm done with fucking caring!" Adam shouted in hatred, pulling Blake away from the now burning oak tree and shoved her away violently. The raven-haired girl almost stumbled over her brown shin-high boots but she quickly caught herself. Her watery amber eyes looked up at the person who she used to proudly call her brother. The one who read her bedtime stories when she was younger. The one who comforted her after a nightmare and told her everything will be alright.

She took a step back and hesitated.

"A-Adam-"

"I said leave!" Adam growled, not bothering to look at his distressed and conflicted sister. He was dead serious this time.

"I said fucking leave!"

In sheer panic of the man's acrimony, Blake ran. Ran as fast as her aching body and heart could handle. The smoke around her clouded her thoughts as tears slid down her pained face. The thick air soaked her over-working lungs as she ran away from everything she knew for her entire life. Her cat ears picked up the man shouting one final thing, as her body kept running, not looking back.

 _"Just know that this isn't goodbye, sister."_

* * *

 **Welp, there you have the prologue. Stay tuned for the first chapter soon, though, I don't really have an upload schedule so I cant be certain when that will be. Just trust me when I say soon, okay? aha**

 **If you've enjoyed, I'd appreciate a follow or maybe a fav**

 **Review are lovely also! Tell me your thoughts and thanks in advance :))**

 **Peace out till next chap! B))**


	2. Rust

_Chapter 1: Rust_

Change.

The simple word either sends fearful shivers up spines or puts abundant smiles of joy on faces.

For some, change is wonderful. It's bountiful, thrilling, and alluring. It's a word that means their life is going to become something greater than it already is. It lets their creative and optimistic minds wander and soar free to places that are fruitful with new possibilities and endless adventure. Change means exciting contingencies and these idealistic minds are fueled by risk-taking and the chance of opportunity. They want to live life to its absolute fullest, even if that means exposing themselves to potential danger. Though, that's were all the thrill comes from.

For the others, change is horrifying. The mere word makes their hands shake and knees buckle. It is everything they don't want in life. Change means different and these panicked minds take that in the worst way possible. It takes quite a long time for these few to live comfortably, their hearts feeding on that desired, peaceful life. They tend to find pleasure in the smallest of things, let it be waking up next to your lover on a cool, spring day, or enjoying a warm coffee while watching the usual crowd bustle in and out of a small café. Change means these minds would need to leave the lives they've gotten used to and start all over again. They hated change for that reason alone.

But she couldn't classify herself as one or the other. She believed that people cannot be easily divided into black or white; it was a wide spectrum the contained many grays in between. Change could be good or bad for anyone, herself included. Some days went by peaceful and undisturbed, and she enjoyed everything those days had to offer. Adventure was never on her daily do-to list, so the calm life was what she adored.

On the contrary, change could mean salvation. It could be the hand that pulls you up and saves you from trouble and toxicity. The girl always tried to look forward in life, no matter what occurred. She always told herself that her past was behind her, that there's no point to worry about what can't be changed. She regretted things she had done, of course, but she tried not to dwell on what was over and done with. Much like silver metal, if left alone and forgotten, it will slowly decay and crumble into formless rust.

* * *

 _Three Years Later_

The girl who was sitting on the ledge of the open window sighed softly, bringing her half-smoked cigarette between her lips once more. She inhaled deeply, which shrunk the cancer stick, and shot the smoke outside her bedroom and watched the gray air disappear as soon as it made contact with the gloomy rainfall. She tapped the end of her cig into her azure-coloured ash tray, its remains coating the bottom with silver powder, then set her attention back on the novel that was in her other hand. Her black-legging clad right leg hung off the ledge, sheltered inside her bedroom as her unclothed left leg was folded near her chest, socked-foot resting on the brim on the window. She sharply shook her head to whip her ebony-black fringe out of her vision, her golden eyes never leaving the page she was reading. She sighed once more.

"I could live like this for the rest of my days," the girl thought to herself.

But she knew deep down inside that things change.

And she was in no place of power to stop it.

A loud crash of something shattering reverberated throughout the once-still dorm room, making the girl's amber eyes flicker and widen in shock. The Faunus cat ears that she kept hidden underneath a black bow flicked madly, the sharp noise piercing her eardrums. She folded the book over her index finger and twisted her body to face where the sound had come from.

"Hey! What happen?" The girl shouted in concern towards her open bedroom door. When she heard no response, she let out a light sigh and scuffed out the remaining length of the cigarette into her ash-tray, bookmarked her book, and hopped off the window ledge. She dusted off and pulled down her white denim shorts, causally placing her novel on the nearby bedtable as she left her bedroom and poured into the small hallway.

She made her way to the main area of the dorm room, which contained a cramped living room, kitchen, and dining room. She spotted her eighteen-year-old roommate stiff with shock in the kitchen, her silver eyes staring widely at the titled floor. The raven-haired girl approached the crimsonette nonchalantly, glancing at her other roommate who was seated at the small dining table, her pale face clearly twisted in annoyance. The citrine-eyed girl quickly turned her attention back at her dismayed friend and when she was standing by her side, she looked down at what the other girl was looking at.

The remains of what looked like to be a yellow-and-black stripped mug were scattered on the kitchen's titled floor. Silver eyes met with gold as the dark redheaded girl seemed to awkwardly search for the correct words.

"Blake! I'm so, so sorry! I know that was your favorite mug, and I'm sorry, really sorry! It was an accident, I-I'll buy you a new one, I promise!" The distressed girl prattled as her dark-haired roommate's eyes shifted from the crimsonette to the shattered porcelain. It was clear that there was tea inside the cup before it was knocked over, as the liquid now lightly coated the titled floor and soaked the front of the clumsy girl's navy-blue sweater. Blake placed a gentle hand on the girl's petite shoulder, which seemed to calm her down a bit.

"Accidents happen, Ruby. Don't worry about it, it's just a mug," Blake stated coolly, eyes drifting away from the pieces that coated the floor to silver eyes, "But how about you? Are you okay? You didn't get hurt, did you?" Without waiting for an answer, the raven-haired girl began to eyeball the shorter girl in front of her, grabbing Ruby's nimble hands and twisting them in different angles as she scanned them for any injuries. Ruby's head perked up, a smile appearing on her face and a light laugh escaping her lips. Blake looked up too and was softly grinning, happy to know her antics cheered the crimsonette up. "No, no, I'm fine, really. I have good reaction time, you see! Swiftness is my secret weapon, you know," Ruby grinned wider but that suddenly faded when she peered down at the floor again, "I really am sorry about your mug though…" Blake gripped the sides of Ruby's arms gingerly and repeated her pervious words, "Really, it's fine. Don't worry about it. It's just a mug, it's no big deal." Silver eyes grew soft as the two girls met each other's gazes. This was disrupted by their other roommate clearing her throat to get the girls' attention.

"I'm not okay with it though. Ruby, can you not be such a klutz for once? We ask you to do one measly thing, to make tea, and you can't even do that correctly." The ticked-off white-haired girl stated, her eyebrows furrowed and posture as straight as a board. Her icy-blue eyes shot daggers at Ruby, making the petite girl slump down in shame, poking her two index fingers repeatedly as she looked away.

"Weiss, please. I forgave her already. Now you're just trying to rub more salt into the wound," Blake replied, grabbing the broom and dustpan from one of the living room corners. Ruby quickly snapped out of her guiltful state when Blake moved and she leaned over the kitchen counter to get some towel paper. Weiss let out a peeved huff, crossing her arms over her light-blue cardigan clad torso as she looked away in annoyance. Blake strided over to the ice princess, without a word, and stuck out the broom towards her. The same aged girl quirked her snow-white eyebrows in confusion, as the twenty-year-old raven-haired girl motioned for Weiss to take the broom from her. Icy-blue eyes widened then thinned upon looking at the broom and then at Blake.

"What?" Weiss spat, arms still folded.

"You could help us clean up, you know."

"Excuse me? I didn't cause the mess."

Blake's jaw tightened, "Yes, but you told her to make the tea. Plus it's a good deed to help out your roommates."

Weiss' lips thinned as she scoffed, "It's still her fault though."

Blake huffed, "You wouldn't stop going on and on about how she doesn't do any housework, which is not even-!"

"It is true!"

"She does way more than-!"

Ruby's form suddenly stood up from its crouched down position, holding a wad of tea-soaked paper towel. Her hands were balled into fists.

"Enough with the arguing already!"

The two girls' mouths' automatically shut up as they stood stiff at Ruby's abrupt demand. Remaining silent, the two roommates turned to face their now-anxious friend.

"You both are acting like kids! And you know that means something, coming from me!" The youngest of the three girls pointed to herself with her thumb, as the other two kept quiet. Amber eyes met with distressed silver ones.

"I'm sorry, Ruby," Blake apologized, placing a soft hand on the girl's shoulder. Ruby maintained eye contact with Blake, a light smile appearing on the youngest girl's calming face.

"I- I am too..." The snow princess sighed then mumbled, the onyx-haired girl's hidden cat ears twitching against the black bow as they picked up the soft murmur. Weiss exhaled again as she made her way over to the kitchen, grabbing the broom from Blake. As the two cleared Weiss' path to the mess, Blake and Ruby exchanged surprised expressions with one another as the silent ice princess began to sweep up pieces of the mug that was not in the puddle of tea.

Working together, the three of them cleaned up the mess in little to no time, the drained out patter of rain from outside gently tapping on the windows. When they finished, they all stretched their muscles out and sighed contently.

"I'll make the tea for us," the now less moody snow-haired girl stated, already filling up the kettle with water. The two girls' eyes widened at Weiss' changed attitude, eyeing one another then at the heiress' back, then each other again. Ruby smiled softly, "Thanks Weiss. I really am sorry for being, well... clumsy." Ruby came up besides the snow-haired girl and placed a caring hand on her shoulder. Weiss tilted her head at Ruby and returned the kind smile as her icy-blue eyes met with silver. Blake looked at her two friends with a proud expression, but she soon spoke up, interrupting the touching moment.

"Ah, Ruby. Your sweater." She pointed to the front of the soaked hoodie the youngest girl wore as she pulled away from Weiss to look down at herself. The scent of green tea perfumed the crimsonette.

"Oh shoot, right! Aw man I hope this doesn't become a stain," Ruby patted the front of her torso as her small hands grabbed the bottom of the damp sweater to take off.

Blake stepped back and started to make her way towards the hallway where their rooms were located. "I'll get you another sweater from your room, if that's alright," she asked as she already was steps away from Ruby's bedroom. "You don't have to do that, I'll get it myself, it's all-" Ruby's sentence was cut short by Blake's shush, the black-haired girl already down the bedroom hallway.

Blake entered her friend's bedroom, which was across from hers, and took timid steps as she scanned the inside. Ruby's room was quite messy, Blake's organizational habits never seemed to influence the youngest girl. Her white walls were covered with assorted posters and papers, ranging from tiny scrap-paper doodles to large movie and video game posters. A small amount of clothing carpeted the wooden floor, along with loose papers that also littered the top of what seemed to be her desk. Blake silently mourned all of the trees that had to be cut down to fuel Ruby's messy habits.

The twenty-year-old girl walked awkwardly over the mess, trying her best not the step on anything. She continued to examine the clothing below her, as she knew Ruby often times left clean laundry on the floor, for some odd reason. Blake's eyes wandered to stray socks, t-shirts, pants... Until she saw a sleeve of a crimson sweater sticking out from underneath Ruby's bed. Blake sighed at the messiness of her roommate as she made her way over to the bed and picked up the sweater.

She inspected the zip-up, hoping it was clean. Her thin fingers lightly grasped the thick fabric and turned it over, her golden eyes widening at the sight. Dark red lightly stained the back of the sweater, the spots undoubtedly sticking out from the red colour of the long-sleeve. Blake fingertips slowly and carefully touched the rough-textured, musty-scented stains. Her face washed over with concern and seriousness, as she continued to inspect the sweater. She could only think of one thing what this splotch could be and it made her sick to her stomach just thinking about it. Blake's thoughts ran at high-speed, most of them questions that needed answers.

 _Is this… blood?_

* * *

 **There ya have it, lovelies, the first actual chapter!**

 **Yes, yes, I know. It's pretty slow right now. BUT I want to develop some relationships first before jumping right into it.**

 **You understand, right? Right? *sulks***

 **I promise there will be Bumbleby, and when it happens, well... you're in for quite a ride.**

 **So I hope you can bear through the next chapter or so to get to some Bumbleby interaction heh.**

 **ANYWAYS**

 **I still hope you enjoyed this :))**

 **Follow if you like, fav if you like-like *winks suggestively***

 **Reviews are fucking awesome-sauce, so drop some my way if you wanna!**

 **Also, I'd like to thank the ones who've already reviewed, fav'd, and followed this fic! Y'all are great and thanks for giving me a chance! :)**

 **Peace out till next chap! B)**


	3. Crimson

Chapter 2: Crimson

"H-hey, Blake? Did you manage to find a clean sweater? I know my room's a mess but…" Ruby questioned the noirette, that was currently in her room, from the kitchen area, seeming to drift away before completing her sentence.

Blake's hands began to slightly tremble, her fingers balling into fists around the crimson sweater. Her breath was caught in her throat and restricted her voice from calling out to the petite girl.

 _Why… Why would there be blood on Ruby's clothing? Why? Did she get hurt? Why didn't she tell us…? I could have…_ The pale fingers of the raven-haired girl seemed to unconsciously glide over the rough, red stains that coated the back of the crimsonette's zip-up hoodie. She scratched the dried splotch lightly with the nail of her index finger, her crinite eyes squinting in examination. _It looks old…_ Then Blake gingerly sniffed it, just for precaution. _Real old, thank the gods. But still… She should have told us… told m-_

"Blaaake?" Ruby called out in a sing-song tone, snapping the golden-eyed girl out of her cluttered thoughts as her hidden Faunus cat ears twitched towards the voice. Blake's heart raced as she heard the redhead's socked footsteps pat again the hardwood flooring, each step getting closer and closer to where Blake was. The noirette gulped, as she quickly placed the crimson sweater back where she found it, underneath Ruby's unmade bed. Blake then started to pretend to search the ground on the carpeted bedroom, trying to make it seem that she's just been looking the entire time. Before she knew it, the crimsonette, her torse clad now a black tank top, popped in, and looked at Blake then at the floor she was staring at.

"A-ahaha…" Ruby laughed unsurely, smiling awkwardly as she rubbed the back of her head, "This is why I don't really want you coming in here... ehehe…" She timidly gestured to the mess that was sprawled all over the quaint bedroom, then met her silver eyes with amber. Blake's breathing seemed to calm down, which made it easier for her to pretend that nothing was concerning her. "Have I taught you nothing, Ruby?" Blake was able to question sarcastically with a small smirk, taking her eyes off the youngest girl to scan the room once more. Ruby's cheeks puffed up in joke frustration, "I know, I know… realistically, I should have broken this habit of mine already … especially when I live with you and – Ruby then continued in a mocking tone - _little miss 'I'm-so-rich-smart-and-never-wrong'_." Almost immediately after the crimsonette stated that, an offended Weiss who yelled "Hey, excuse me?!" was heard all the way from the dining room. Ruby then let out a chuckle at her friend's reaction as Blake breathed out a light laugh along with a gentle smile.

"Anyways," Blake began, directing her attention to the reason why Ruby came in here in the first place, "I didn't know if it was okay to look in your closet, I know some people are a little… _sensitive_ when it comes to that."

Blake was hinting at Weiss a couple of weeks ago; she'll never forget the painful bump on the head that the ice princess gave her. She had just been trying to look for her spare ribbon, and after asking for help to find it and getting the cold shoulder from Weiss, Blake decided to take matters into her own hands. She just didn't expect it to land her in bed with a major headache and Ruby daintily holding an icepack to her head.

Ruby laughed, "Aha, right. No, no, I'm fine with it. But _you_ probably wouldn't be… if you thought _this_ is a mess, wait until you see in here." The petite girl wandered over to the closet door, and yanked the set of narrow double doors open. Gold eyes widened at the sight. Everything was just stuffed and jam-packed, no sense of order or neatness. The only thing that was remotely organized was the clothes that hung on the hangers. Everything else… looked like it was just thrown in the closet, to be dealt with later. Though, when it came to this stuff and Ruby, the noirette knew _later_ meant _never._

"O-oh, I see…" Blake stuttered out, internally cringing at the messiness. Ruby awkwardly poked her two index fingers together repeatedly, "Yeeaahh…" After a quick moment of silence, the crimsonette spoke up once more with a smile, "No worries, I'm kinda glad you didn't find this mess on your own, aha." She then yanked a baggy bright red pullover from one of the hangers, and slipped it on in one swift motion.

Looking at the newly sweater clad Ruby, Blake's thoughts hit like a brick, going back to the bloody zip-up she found underneath the bed. She shrunk down and unconsciously fidgeted with her fingers while looking away. She didn't want to make her nervous actions very noticeable, but Ruby still acknowledged the noirette's down casted behavior. Smiling cheerfully while placing a hand on Blake's shoulder and pointing to her pullover, she said, "I said don't worry about it, okay? Just a sweater, is all." Blake couldn't stop herself from pondering up those eerie thoughts on _how_ those blood stains got on the young girl's wrinkled old sweater. Amber eyes glanced at where the stained sweater lay, but Blake quickly shook her head to temporarily rid her thoughts. She looked up at Ruby only to find her at the door, peering over her shoulder at the raven-haired girl. "I think the tea's almost done, c'mon," she stated with a wave of the hand, not waiting for her golden-eyed friend as she made her way to the kitchen. Blake sighed deeply and held her head in her hands for a couple of seconds, closing her eyes.

 _You just need to relax, Blake. There will be a time where you could ask her about it. Just calm down, everything will be fine._

Blake trotted out of the untidy room and into the kitchen where her two roommates were. Ruby sat at the head seat of the dining table, her legs swaying back and forth in a playful manner, silver eyes practically glued onto the screen of her phone. Weiss' back faced Blake as she prepared the tea for the three of them, slowly pouring boiled water into the tea-maker. Blake crossed her arms and leaned her body weight onto the top of the back of the chair on Ruby's right side. She watched Weiss grab three mugs and place them on the table in front of each person's respective seat. With Blake's usual mug broken, she was given a pure-yellow coloured cup to drink from. Ruby and Weiss had their normal mugs: a dark-red coloured one with rose designs all around, and a light blue one with a crystal-like snowflake pattern. Blake kept silent as she waited patiently for her tea, occasionally glancing at the crimsonette beside her and watching the snow queen's actions. When the tea finished brewing, Weiss gracefully poured the green tea into everyone's cups.

"Thanks Weiss!" An over-enthusiastic Ruby blurted out, putting down her phone as Weiss finished pouring the tea. The crimsonette almost immediately lunged for the sugar that was already sitting on the table. The ice princess just sighed and rolled her eyes at the youngest girl, and continued pouring the rest of the tea into the remaining two mugs. When she almost hit the rim of Blake's new mug, the raven-haired girl thanked her, picked the cup up and sipped some so none would spill. After pouring for herself, Weiss took the seat that was on the left side of Ruby, and sipped gingerly as a smallest tug of a smile appeared on her now-satisfied face. She looked up at Blake, who was still standing.

"Are you going to take a seat?" Weiss inquired, quirking her eyebrow to the chair in front of the noirette. Ruby was too busy to join the conversation, as she was currently in the middle of unloading the third spoonful of sugar into her tea.

"Actually, uhm, I'm just gonna go to my room and smoke for a bit," Blake's slightly unsteady tone seeped out as she cleared her throat and internally hoped that her roommates didn't notice it.

Weiss took another quick sip of her lightly-sweetened green tea and looked up at Blake again. "You know that someone might find out about your, er… habits one day. Students aren't allowed to smoke in the dormitories. Why don't you just go to the designated smoking areas?" The snow-haired girl tsk-ed then questioned. After Ruby finally finished dumping the heaps of sugar into her tea, she looked up at her two friends, silently joining the conversation. Blake stuffed her free hand into the front pocket of her white jean short-shorts while looking away for a moment, "It's too loud in there. Most of the time it's filled with druggies who I don't think even attend the school. Not my sort of crowd."

Weiss smirked, "Then what _is_ your sort of crowd?"

Blake stood speechless, trying to find the right words. She was an introverted twenty-year old university kid, she didn't have too many friends. She had lots of acquaintances, for sure, but had very little she considered a _friend._ But it's not like she was going to admit that to Weiss, heiress of The Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest mining companies in all of Remnant, who most likely had tons of friends due to the sole fact.

Before Blake was able to reply, Ruby cut in. "US!" The youngest girl answered a little too excitedly as she flung her arms up in the air. Weiss just rolled her eyes, drinking more of her tea as Blake laughed lightly and mentally thanked Ruby for derailing the ice princess' train of thoughts. "Anyway, you're all great and I'm thankful for that but I just need some alone time right now, okay?" Blake said, waiting for a response before deciding to leave to her room. "I'm not going to stop you," Weiss stated, looking away from golden eyes. "Yeah, we get it! Don't worry 'bout it!" Ruby replied as cheerful and understanding as ever. Blake tugged a smile, "Thanks guys. Oh and thanks for the tea again, Weiss." The snow queen just hummed in return as the two at the table went back to drinking their tea.

* * *

Blake sat up in her usual smoking spot: on the ledge of the open window. She sighed, bringing her already lit cigarette to her mouth. Parting her lips ever so slightly, she blew out a stream of smoke to the outside, watching the rain sadly fall towards the earth from gloomy clouds. The chilly air brushed her face and purple hoodie-clad arms, making her body and hidden Faunus cat ears shiver a bit. She tapped the ember part of the cig into her blue ash tray and took another sip of her almost-finished mug of unsweetened green tea. Blake sighed again.

 _I shouldn't be thinking about it anymore, yet here I am, thinking about it. Those blood stains… yes they're old but why didn't Ruby just throw the sweater out if she wasn't able to clean it? Why keep a stained sweater, especially when it's blood? I don't understand. Also, she should have told us, told me. Maybe she couldn't… or didn't want to? Maybe it was a personal matter, I'm not sure..._

 _Ha, look at me, being a hypocrite when I won't even tell her or Weiss who I really am… what I really am..._

Blake's cat ears twisted towards a sudden knock that echoed throughout the dorm room. The raven-haired girl cocked her head in the direction of the front door, still sitting on the ledge. "I GOT IT!" Ruby's voice boomed as the sound of a chair scrapping against the wooden floor sounded. "You dunce, I'm right here, you don't have to yell!" An annoyed-sounding Weiss raised her voice, but not as loud as Ruby's. "I was telling both you _and_ Blake, _princess,_ " Ruby teased, making Weiss scoff disgustingly. Soft footsteps were heard but then they stopped and were replaced with the sound of the front door squeaking open.

"Hiya," Ruby greeted nonchalantly, "What can I do for you?"

Curiosity setting in, Blake got up from the window ledge and placed her still burning cig in the ash tray. The noirette poked her head out the doorway of her room to see who was at the door.

Three men stood outside the dorm room, two of them wore the same serious expression and clothing: a black business suit, black dress shoes, and a red tie. Blake's attention quickly snapped to the man in the middle. He was clad in a black suit with thin, white vertical strips and a crimson tie with a detailed design of a rose. He sported a pair of dark-tinted aviators and a white fedora with an onyx-coloured silk ribbon wrapped around the top, similar to the one she used for her bow. Small strains of blood-red hair stuck out from the tilted hat, his grim expression showing as he looked down at petite girl who had opened the door.

Blake stepped back into her room in panic. Her breathing was rapid, her chest feeling heavy. Terrified, she leaned up again the wall of her bedroom, attempting to slow her breath. _H-he… He couldn't have found me… how? How the hell did he-?_

"Hello there, I'm looking for a girl named Blake. Does she live here by any chance?"

 _Adam._

* * *

 **/cue dramatic music, DUN DUN DUUUUNN!**

 **There ya go! I was really in the mood to write today so here's an early update.**

 **I'm really excited for fic, since I actually planned some stuff out and know where it'll be going.**

 **ANYWAYS!**

 **Thanks for all the recent favs and follows, glad to know you guys are enjoying it.**

 **Also reviews, yes! Thanks a bunch, y'all are all-stars!**

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 **With that said, peace out till next chap! B)**


	4. Vapor

Chapter 3: Vapor

Blake's heart felt like it was going to pop right out of her chest. Her form was curled up in a ball, leaning against the wall right next to her open bedroom door. She felt her hands begin to tremble as her liquid-gold eyes widened in fear, staring blankly in front of her. Her Faunus cat ears twisted sideways, but only slightly due to the restriction of her black bow. She gulped down hard, her uneven breath escaping her throat.

 _A-Adam_ … _How did he find me… after all these years…? Why now? Why couldn't he have just left me alone-?_

Another screech of a chair being scraped against the floor echoed, as light thumps of barefoot feet patted a couple of steps. They stopped after a couple of strides. "Who's asking?" Weiss' voice questioned in a little too demanding tone. The three men at the door did look quite intimidating, though apparently their appearance wasn't frightening enough to make the ice princess hold back her tongue. Blake's hand was clasped over her heart, as she breathed steadily in her nose and out her mouth. She poked her head out of her doorway gingerly, not daring to make a sound. Weiss and Ruby's backs faced the noirette, the ice princess' hands on her hips and form now standing next to the youngest girl. Adam's lips twisted into a mischievous grin as he looked down at the two, slightly tilting his fedora with a red-gloved hand.

"So she is here then, that's great. Mind getting her for me?" Adam asked in a fake sweet-sounding voice, the two men accompanying him looking downwards as well at the two girls. "You didn't answer my question, sir," Weiss snapped, the white-haired girl was never used to anyone ignoring her demands. _Fuck… Weiss, you don't know who you're talking to, damnit,_ Blake thought, biting her lips to stop herself from calling out to her, _you have to stay hidden, Blake, don't do anything you'll regret…_ Ruby stood in silence, watching her friend and the man in the middle stare at each other for a moment.

"Watch your tone, sweetheart. I just want to have a little chat with my dear sister, that's all," Adam snarled, his expression twisting in growing annoyance. Blake gasped sharply but quickly muffled her mouth with her palm, her citrine eyes widened. _N-no, he wants to take me away n-not talk-_ Ruby then spoke up and titled her head with curiosity, "Sister? So your Blake's brother? She never told us she had a brother…" Adam let a fleeting laugh escape his lips before they turned back into a smirk, "and she's a smart girl for not telling you. Now step aside, darling." He quirked his head towards his men and nodded for them to search the dorm room. In fear, Blake ducked her head back into her bedroom, only to slowly peer out again when she saw the snow queen hold out a palm for the three men to stop dead in their tracks, as they only had one step inside the room.

"Excuse me, sir. I'm pretty sure if Blake had a brother, she would tell us, we've all been roommates and friends for more than a year now. I'm sorry, but I don't let strangers into my home." Weiss bit back as Adam's face became more irritated. _W-Weiss, you need to stop-_ The red-haired man calmed himself down, his lips curling into a tight smirk. He let out another dry chuckle, "Oh, I may be a stranger to you, but I sure do know about you, princess, way more than you think." Weiss crossed her arms and looked away for a moment, then stared into the man's aviators, almost like she was daring him to go on.

"Weiss Schnee: 20 years old, second daughter of Alaric Schnee, who is the president and founder of the SDC, making you the heiress to the one of the biggest and most influential mining companies in all of Remnant. Your older sister is named Winter, who is a military specialist for the Atlas kingdom, which is where you grew up. Your semblance is using Glyphs and also Summoning, which runs in the family, though you never use it because you have no need to physically fight. This is your second year at Beacon Academy, and you major in Business Administration and Management and minor in Music Theory; you are the top of your class for both courses."

Weiss' form stepped back in shock, her arms now tucked close to her torso as if she was defending herself from the man. Blake's mouth gapped open against her palm. The white-haired girl's body shook a bit and before she was giving the chance to even think about replying to Adam, he turned his head to face Ruby with the same stern expression.

"And you. You're Ruby Rose: 18 years old, daughter of Taiyang Xiao Long, who is a teacher at Signal Academy on the quaint island of Patch, where you grew up. Your mother, Summer Rose, died when you were six years old due to… unconfirmed reasoning, but it was classified as man slaughter. Your semblance is swiftness, you use it quite often to get to and from places like to your classes. You're a first year at Beacon taking Criminology as your major and Robotics and Mechatronics as your minor; you're slightly above average in both courses."

Ruby hands began to visually shake. She stepped backwards like Weiss, who was still standing stiff as a board. Both girls seemed fearful to the stranger's expansive knowledge on them, with Adam just smiling down at the two wickedly. He tapped his finger on his chin facetiously in thought, looking up at the ceiling then back at the girls. "I feel like I'm forgetting something…" Ruby seemed to know what he forgot to mention, her arms panicking and stretching out towards the man to stop. "N-no, please don't…" Ruby's shaky and quiet voice spilled out, but that only made Adam grin even more evilly.

"Ah, that's right. Your older sister."

Blake's Faunus ears twitched suddenly at her brother's words as her head snapped back in surprise. _Sister? Ruby has a sister? But she's never told us about her… She always said she was an only child… What… Why would-_

"20 years old. Occupation unknown. Location unknown. Whereabouts," Adam paused, his smirk growing, "… unknown. She might as well be dead, if you ask me."

Ruby's hands balled into fists, as her entire body appeared to be in down-cast. She looked away, sniffling lightly. Weiss snapped out of her taken aback state, and furrowed her eyebrows at Adam. She opened her mouth to address the man but was cut off before she could even draw out a breath. Adam looked away from the girls, not seeming to care about their current states, and pushed the two aside while scanning the dorm room. "I've talked for way too long, I'm running out of time. You two," Adam's gloved hand motioned at the men beside him then around the living quarters, "Search the area. A Faunus shouldn't be hard to find. Just know I am not leaving without my sister or else I'll have your heads."

With that said, Blake fell back into her dorm room, her heart pumping blood madly throughout her tense body. _N-no, I have to- I have to get out of here-!_ Weiss' voice was heard, yelling and protesting the men's trespassing, but they seemed to ignore her. Ruby was quietly fazed as she questioned the man's use of 'Faunus' to describe Blake.

The noirette secretly knew this would happen. She knew her once-loving now-corrupt brother would find her and force her go back to her old ways. Even until now, Adam's final words he had said to her on that night three years ago echoed in her head: " _This isn't goodbye, sister."_ She knew her brother well and she knew that he never lies, always truthful with his intentions and words. That's probably what scared her the most about him.

She sprinted from one side to her room to another, looking for certain items with clammy, finicky hands. She felt a bead of sweat form on her brow as she paid close attention to the footsteps that now covered the dorm room. "Hey!" Weiss' voice yelled angrily. There was the muffled sound of hands grabbing fabric, but it was quickly replaced with a loud slap onto flesh and a shriek. "W-Weiss!" Ruby shouted in concern, as the heavy footsteps started up again. Blake gasped and widened her golden eyes, subconsciously poking her head out once more to see what had happened.

Ruby's petite form held up Weiss' shocked and slightly folded body, as the snow-haired girl's right hand rubbed at her now painfully red cheek. Adam sternly peered at the two, a pistol now in his hand pointing straight at them. "We either do this the easy way," he then flicked the gun towards the terrified girls, "or the hard way. So if you don't want the latter, I suggest staying back since you're no help." His henchmen then resumed their search as Adam shifted away, replacing the gun back into the hidden beast pocket of his suit.

Blake didn't have much time. She had to leave, had to leave Weiss and Ruby, who had nothing to do with this yet they still got involved. _I'm… I'm so sorry, I'm-_

Then the thing she begged not to happen, happened.

"Sir, she's over there, down the hall!" One of Adam's side men called out, hand already into his suit to grab his gun. "Go then! Shoot her legs if you have to but do not kill her!" Adam barked out his orders, the two men bolting down the small hallway towards the noirette's bedroom.

Blake needed to _go,_ she needed to leave as fast as possible. Cursing out loud, she channeled her semblance and managed to create a very undetailed and noticeably fake form of herself, but it was the best she could do in her terrified state. She fell onto the floor, reaching under her bed for her black sling over knapsack. It was packed with items in case of an emergency, if she ever needed to run again. At that moment, it seemed like the best time to take it. Blake quickly slipped it on her back, tugging on a pair of leather-black combat boots. Now standing, she ran and leaped onto the ledge of still open window, clumsily knocking over her ash-tray outside.

Two gunshots rang out as the sound pieced her ears, the bullets shattering pieces of the wall at the end of the hallway. The two grunts finally made it to Blake's bedroom's doorway. One of them shot up the fake dummy that the noirette created, the stray bullets piecing the wooden floor and wall beside Blake. With that as her queue, she turned her body to face the window and dropped out. The two men both sprinted towards Blake only to stop abruptly at the window, as they were too big to crawl though the fully opened window. Blake landed safely on two feet, glancing up at the men who scrambled away from view, running back into the dorm room. Adam could be heard from inside, yelling madly, presumably at his two men, but his voice was soon drained out by the deafening sounds of more gunshots.

Blake didn't have the heart to look back again. So she ran and looked forward. She ran as fast as her body allowed her to. She ran away from her nefarious brother. She ran away from her once peaceful and content life. She ran away from the only two people she could call friends. Who was she kidding? They wouldn't be her friends after this. Who would? _I lied about everything. From Adam's existence to me being a Faunus… Now they know everything. It's all my fault and pathetic me is running away from it all. They'll never forgive me._

 _I am so sorry, so sorry... but this is what I must do._

* * *

Blake leaned up against a tree as she took a moment to catch her breath. She ran for what felt like forever, her legs weak and body numb. Despite this, she forced herself to keep walking, to keep moving. After a couple of steps, there was a clearing in the forest she had been sprinting in. Rain soaking her body and face, she squinted at what was in front of her. A hauled train sat on the tracks, with the cart nearest to Blake having its metal, sliding door slightly open. _Prefect._ The thought of being a stowaway wasn't ideal to her, but for all she knew, Adam could still be on her tail and she needed to get as far away as possible. Blake crouched down behind the tree she was leaning on and attentively listen and looked around for anyone. Her Faunus ears flicked against her bow as a shuffling sound resonated from a bush near the train cart.

A figure appeared out of the bush and was thrown onto the ground in front of the open train cart, her form scrambling on the wet grass. She looked aro und Blake's age, hinted at by her youthful complexion. A gruff, towering beast of a man bent down besides the girl and roughly grabbed and lifted her onto her feet with one hand by her heather-gray sweater. Her messy, long blonde hair was soaked by the rain and grass, but still kept its slight curliness. The bearded man made the girl look at him, his face enraged and the girl slightly curling her bloody lips in return.

"Listen the fuck up, blondie! I've had it up to the rim with you! Just tell me where the fuck it is and maybe I'll let you go unscathed." The grizzly man barked, shaking the weak body of the girl. The young blonde forced out a breathy laugh, smirking.

"It's a little too late for that, dontcha think, dude?"

That earned her a punch square in her gut, which caused more blood to drip out of her mouth.

Blake couldn't watch any longer. She felt sorry for the stranger girl to some degree over the unfair advantage the huge man had on her. She had no idea what they were fighting about but she felt like she had to stop it. But why?

Blake stealth-walked from tree to bush until she was near enough to be able to surprise attack the man in two short strides. She ever so quietly dug her hand into her backpack and grabbed her yellow handkerchief and combo edge pocket knife, wrapping the fabric around the lower part of her face and flicking the blade out of the knife's handle.

"Just shut your fucking mouth and tell me, bitch!"

The blonde lightly chuckled.

"Oh, I seeeee… I'm a bitch now… You know, I was thinking about spilling the beans, but well since I'm a bitch… i guess you can go fuck yourself."

The girl then aimed and spit the blood pooling on her lips at the bearish man. Knowing that that was what was going to set off the man, Blake mustered the last remaining amount of energy she had and shot out of her hiding place behind the bushes. She flipped the knife so that the handle was facing away from her and jumped towards the two, knocking the bearded man out with one blow to his temple with the hilt of the knife. She landed ungracefully as the bear-man crashed to the earth, his heavy body laying unconscious. The noirette's chest heaved, as she knelt on the ground and flicked the blade back into its handle. The blonde girl's face flushed with shock, and took a moment to catch her breath also. Her glistening lilac eyes met with amber, but before words were exchanged, the train's horn honked twice as the train itself was set in motion.

"Oh shit, you boarding this train?" The girl questioned and wiped some blood away from her lips, getting up onto her converse-clad feet shakily. The noirette's mind still dizzy, all she could do was nod. "Alright, we gotta go then!" The purple-eyed girl grabbed the weak Blake by the arm, struggling to keep up with the girl's fast pace. The girl released her grip on Blake when they were close enough to the train and yanked open the metal door just enough for the two girls to shimmy their way inside the desolate cart. The blonde girl first hopped in, but then turned around and extended her arm to help Blake inside. She sloppily grasped her left foreman, the girl letting out a grunt as she pulled the noirette inside. The two girls laid on the undoubtedly dirty wooden floor of the empty cart, wheezing and huffing to catch their breath. Blake was the first to get up, shifting away from the stranger that accompanied her.

The girl wiped her brow then her lips with the back of her sweater sleeve, looking at the newly formed blood stain. "Pheeewww... that was sure was _fun._ Don't think I'll be invited to his birthday party anytime soon... anyways, thanks for your help back there, I really-"

The blonde's sentence was cut off by the sound of a pocket knife being flicked open. Her wide lilac eyes peered at the handkerchief-covered noirette pointing her blade at her. Blake's hand trembled slightly, as her muffed voice spoke out.

"You… Who are you?"

* * *

 **Gasp, 2 updates in 2 days? Yeah, sorry, don't get used to it. I was just really in the mood to write so that's what I did.**

 **Amazing what you can achieve with motivation... Now only if I could do the same with my physics homework ;A;**

 **So, here we _finally_ have some Blake and Yang interaction, yay! Not off to a good start for the ladies but well, we'll just have to see how they progress.**

 **ANYWAYS!**

 **Thanks for the new favs and follows, y'all are fucking amazeballs.**

 **AND FUCK YEAH REVIEWERS! You guys are special eggs :)**

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 **Okay dokie, with that said, peace out till next chap! B)**


	5. Flare

**Hey lovelies! I decided that I'll be from now on replying to reviews from previous chapters before each chapter just so it's a bit more organized for me. Feel free to skip if you're not interested in reading review feeback! Thanks to the reviewers, y'all just a bundles of goodness :))**

 ** _reconghost5:_ Glad you found it interesting! And well, I have some ideas up my sleeve so hopefully they will be intruging? aha**

 ** _Matthew998:_ Thanks for the constant feedback, bud! And yeah, that weekend I had tons of inspiration to write so BOOM! 2 chaps in 2 days hehe. And heck yes, finally the Bumbleby starts *pumps fist***

 ** _unmei96:_ Hella yahas they meet! Only took a couple of chapters but welp, *jazz hands* here there are! B)**

* * *

Chapter 4: Flare

The blonde girl was taken aback slightly at the sight of the silvery-black blade, the distance between her face and the knife too close for comfort. The girl's wide lilacs fixated onto the dagger, then into the noirette's tense amber eyes. She sat up a little bit straighter, biting her lip.

"H-hey there… Let's not get too hasty, alright?" The blonde stuttered out, her cool-headed way of speaking seeming to melt away. She shifted her body just a tad back to space herself from the yellow bandana-faced girl, leaning on her fingerless-black gloved left hand. The raven-haired girl's fist continued to softly tremble, making the knife shake noticeably. She thought of using her other hand to steady her grip, but voted against it as it would make her seem weak and tilted the blade ever so closer to the girl, trying to become more intimidating. The blonde lifted her right arm up in meek defense towards Blake, her sweater sleeve sliding down a bit and the girl's palm facing directly at the noirette to stop.

Blake flinched back; not at the gesture, but at what her now-wide gold eyes fell upon. She hadn't noticed this feature about the girl until that moment and Blake mentally slapped herself for her dazed mind not paying closer attention. She slowly lowered her pocket knife down and unconsciously pulled down her handkerchief, her purple-sleeved arm falling limp to her side at the sight of the blonde's limb.

Or what _should_ have been the blonde's limb.

The girl didn't have a right arm. She was missing her fleshed-covered, blood-pumping organic human arm. Where a real arm should be, it was replaced with a thinly-metaled prosthetic. Its skinny but detailed iron frame formed a stiff hand, resembling human fingers and had tiny bolts for the joints. The prosthetic seemed to do as the blonde commanded, as Blake's citrine eyes regarded the metal digits curling up as they hesitantly shaped into a closed fist.

Blake closed her eyes and shook her head sharply, snapping herself out of her thoughts. Confused but relieved lilac eyes fixated on the noirette's down casted ambers, as Blake inhaled deeply and shut her eyes for a moment to compose herself. She then flipped the blade of her knife back into its hilt and slipped it into the bag she wore. She looked away uncomfortably, not knowing what to say. Luckily, the blonde cut through the silence, her shoulders visually relaxing at sight of Blake's now passive actions.

"Hey, look. Maybe we could settle this out, clearly we've gone off on the wrong foot here."

A pause.

"Who are you?" Blake repeated her original question, but this time in a more curious tone then demanding.

The blonde's normal calm and carefree attitude seemed to slowly flow back into her as she sat cross-legged and rubbed the back of her head with her metal hand, her lips curling into a shy smile.

"I have lots of names: Blondie, Firecracker, Goldilocks, Lioness, Phoenix… I know there's others but I suppose you could add 'bitch' to that list," The girl let out a soft chuckle, remember what trouble she got into before, but when met with Blake's serious expression, she stifled it quickly, "But uhm, most people just call me Yang."

Blake's lips curved into a frown, letting her citrine eyes stare into intense violet. There was another short pause, the noirette's Faunus cat ears twitching at the sounds of soft rain pelting the metal construct of the train cart and the train's iron wheels grinding against the tracks. The sliding door of the cart was still open, Blake's eyes glancing at it. Yang looked over at it too, uncrossing her legs and pushing her body up. "Oh, I can close it a bit more if it bothers-" the blonde started, in the midst of standing up before the raven-haired girl cut off both her sentence and movement. "N-no, it's fine. I'd actually rather have the door more open if that's okay," Blake answered, the girl nodding as Blake walked over and slowly pushed and made the opening of the rusty, metal sheet wider.

She stood there still for a moment, inhaling deeply as her amber eyes watched the forest landscape around her pass by. The light rain shower outside gave the scenery an almost peaceful and tranquil feeling to Blake, as she felt her pluviophile side beginning to show. The noirette watched as unrecognizable land shot past her, biting her lip at realization of what's become of her life now.

She was on the run. Again.

It took her a good 18 months of never ending hard-work get where she was at. The first few months were the worst: alone with no home, no money. She hid her Faunus identity and changed her last name from Taurus to Belladonna to avoid conflicts just so she could start off fresh. Yes, she had broken the law a couple of times: stealing, trespassing. Though she needed to do those things to survive. She quickly changed her ways and earned money in a more honest way, doing whatever job that needed to be done, let it had been cleaning beds to painting walls. By the end, she could contently say she was happy with how everything turned out. She proudly got into Beacon Academy, her university of choice, her endless days and nights studying paying off, and lived on campus with two girls that she considered her friends in a quick couple of months. She had a place she could call home and people she could trust.

But she knew it was too good to be true.

She always had that lingering thought that her vengeful brother would come find her again. " _This isn't goodbye, sister."_ Adam's last words shouted to her that fearful night always haunted the back of her mind for years.

And now she had to start a new life again. All that work just to be on the run, escaping her crazed older sibling once more. Time still flowed on, never to stop. All of the events she lived through led to this point, sharing a stolen train ride with a stranger.

A stranger with wild, long blonde hair and vibrant lilac eyes. A stranger who possessed a metal prosthetic arm. A stranger that Blake for some reason couldn't bear to see get hurt and ended up saving.

A stranger named Yang.

Blake breathed in and out the metallic smell that coaxed the air as she sat down cross-legged facing the outside, back to the blonde girl. Some raindrops dampened her soft face and clothed body, but by now the droplets were so tiny they were almost like mist. The noirette slipped off her black knap-sack and dug her hand into, searching for her cigarettes. Her fingers lightly brushed her money pouch and pocket notebook before she found what she was looking for, grabbing the box and plucking out one of the seven cigarettes. Sighing, she popped the cig into the corner of her lips and searched for a lighter. After a while of digging through her bag, she tsk-ed to herself. _Damn it, seriously, Blake? You forget a damn match? Now how am I going to-?_

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when a figure joined Blake on the floor, filling up the empty space that was to her left as a mess of blonde hair entered her prereferral vision. Blake tugged the strings on her bag to close it and turned toward the girl sitting beside her, who held up a red-coloured lighter with her flesh fingers.

"Need a flame?" Yang asked with a light smile, her thumb on the sparkwheel. Blake hesitated a bit, not expecting the offer, but she nodded slowly in response. The blonde's metal hand waved for her to come closer and the noirette shyly shuffled over, her knee now touching the girl's leg. Blake leaned her head into where Yang held the lighter, with the cig still in her mouth. The purple-eyed girl cupped around the lighter with her left hand, protecting it from the elements, before flicking the sparkwheel once. Yang led the petite flame to the end of the cancer stick and when it caught fire, she released her thumb, pulling back and holding the lighter loosely on top f her dark-blue denim clad lap.

"Thanks," Blake said after taking a drag of the cigarette and blowing the smoke away from the girl. Yang nodded then grinned, "No probs." Silence surrounded the two once more, both girls turning to watch the outside roll pass them. Blake noted that she was still touching legs with the blonde and she wondered to herself if she had noticed it too. She glanced at the girl sitting beside her, who was mindlessly fidgeting with the red lighter, alternating from metal to human fingers.

"Do you… do you maybe want a cigarette?" Blake offered quietly, making Yang quirk her head to peer into amber eyes. "Ah, no thanks. I'm not a smoker," the blonde replied nonchalantly, still slowly spinning the lighter around. Citrine eyes squinted at the object in the girl's hand and frowned, "Why do you have a lighter on-hand then?" Yang stopped twirling the lighter and met Blake's amber gaze with violet. She answered while letting out a breathy laugh, "I hang around people who smoke a lot. It's become a habit of mine to carry one around for their sake, as they sometimes forget their own…" She paused, her grin becoming wider as she winked at the noirette, "Much like yourself."

Blake turned away, biting her lip. _Does she act and smile like this to every person she meets? Or am I just a special case? No, no, what are you thinking, Blake. It has to be the latter…_

"Welp, I'm also a bit of a firebug, so there's that too," Yang added, scrapping her thumb against the sparkwheel to make a flame appear. She stared at it for a second, then released her finger to make the small flare disappear. Blake ever so slightly tugged the corner of her lips to form the smallest hint of a smile before taking another inhale of her cigarette and tapping the ashes away.

Yang turned her head to face Blake's profile, a thin line of gray smoke escaping her lips.

"So what's _your_ name?"

Blake paused mid-action, holding the cancer stick an inch away from her mouth. She pulled the cigarette away, her eyes fixated on the embers that fell from the end of it. She bit her lips slightly. _I mean, there's no harm in telling her my name, right?_

"Blake," she breathed softly, glancing at the blonde for a second before turning away to smoke. She felt a bit awkward staring directing at the girl…

"Well, Blake," Yang addressed her in a cheery tone, "It's real nice to meet you, seriously. Everyone I've bumped into 'round Beacon have been, well… not the friendliest, to say the least. I mean, you saw what happened with that bear-of-a-man earlier. Can you believe that oaf's name is Junior? Aha, _such_ a fitting name," Yang chuckled to herself, rubbing the back of her head with her mechanical hand before clearing her throat to continue. "Anyway, what I'm trying to say is thank you. For, ya know, getting me out of that situation. It was kinda my fault for agitating the dude but despite that, you still came in to save me- a stranger. If I saw some idiot girl messing with a guy of that size, I would've minded my own business to be honest. But… I'm glad you didn't. Only the gods know where the fuck I would be if you didn't bud in. So I thank you for that… I owe you one."

Blake didn't puff on her cigarette at all during the blonde's whole exposition. Her hidden Faunus ears twitched when listening intently to the girl's voice as she felt Yang's lilac eyes intensely staring at her profile. The raven-haired girl scuffed out the half-smoked cig into the train cart's metal exterior, the ashes being swept away by the cool, spring wind. Blake quirked her head to face the blonde, running a dainty hand through her midnight-black tassels. She smiled softly at Yang, amber fixating on violet.

"D-don't mention it, it was nothing," Blake's shy stutter returned and she mentally slapped herself in the face for the second time boarding the train. She didn't usually sound like this towards strangers, but her voice kept on giving into how she truly felt about the whole ordeal. She was uneasy with this girl knew nothing about, for sure, but there was something different about her that made Blake just-

"Sorry, do I make you nervous? I can sit away from you if that'd make you feel better, I understand," Yang frowned, her eyebrows furrowing as she picked up on the noirette's anxious attitude. "No! No," Blake said almost too spontaneously, urging the blonde to keep her seat next to her before clearing her throat, "Uhm, I mean- it's fine. I'm fine, sorry. Please, sit." Yang plopped her half-standing body back beside Blake, the corners of her lips quirking into a gentle smile. Their knees were touching again but this time Blake decided not to question it. The silence between them returned, though it was a comforting type of quietness. The two girls just stared out at the forest that passed them, post-storm weather giving it a sense of tranquility. Yang went back to impetuously playing with her lighter as Blake lazily traced the details of her combat boots. She could never get tired of rainy weather.

"I like your bow," Yang said, looking at the noirette again with that warming smile of hers. Blake glanced at content amber, the compliment making the raven-haired girl tug the corners of her lips as she lightly touched the black ribbon. "Thanks," she impulsively replied. _Why is she… so nice to me? Yeah she did say I saved her life, I guess, but we're still strangers. And I pointed a fucking knife at her as soon as we got onto this train… is something up? Is she toying with me?_

Blake shook those clouded thoughts away as quickly as possible. She may be playing her for all she knew, but if Blake had to make another mad dash for it, she wouldn't hesitant. She was not afraid to take risks anymore, considering what had happened today. It wasn't a mindset she enjoyed but she had to focus on the present and what comes after that. _What comes after..._

"Uhm, so," Blake started up the conversation this time, curious purple eyes peering at her, "Do you know where this train's heading?" Yang turned her head to look at the forestry outside the train cart. "Hmm… I mean, I hope it's heading towards where I need to be. I sort of found this train by sheer luck or else I would have been walking the whole damn way home. But we can keep an eye out for any landmarks to find out where we are, if you want," the blonde yawned, lying down on the wooden floor with her hands cupping the back of her head before sighing, "that won't be for a while though." Blake twisted her body, looking at Yang's peaceful face, her lilac eyes shut in relaxation. It was only early evening and Blake didn't feel like taking a nap. Strangely enough, this was one of the only times she felt like she _wanted_ to speak with someone, to hold a conversation. To not be in silence.

"Hey, uh," Blake said, fixating her gaze on the girl lying down next to her. Yang didn't open her eyes but hummed a drowsy and content acknowledgement. "You… you said before that you owed me one, right?" The noirette asked the blonde, the girl humming again, though this time in question. Blake continued, "Well, you can owe me right now then." This time, Yang didn't stay lying on the floor any longer but sluggishly propped her torso up onto of her elbows and squinted her eyes into amber. "Hmm, what do ya have in mind?" the blonde's soft voice inquired, curious to what the raven-haired girl was pondering. "I was thinking that well, since, as you said, we'll be on this train for gods know how long," Blake started, pausing before smiling fondly at the girl next to her.

"Why don't you tell me more about yourself, Yang?"

* * *

 **Oooh. Blakey, dear. What's going on in that mind of yours? :oo**

 **Anyway, there ya go, next chapter complete! Thanks to all of the recent fav and followers, let's me know y'all are interested in my fic. Makes me happy :))**

 **If you're new AND are enjoying this fic so far, let me know with a fav or follow. They truly give me more motivation to write this story!**

 **Also, rEVIEWS. Nom nom. Just like the author's note in the last chapter, I still feed off them. So throw some my way, maybe? :))**

 **Welp, with that said, peace out till next chap! B)**


	6. Clouded

**Last chapter's review feedback!**

 _ **Sachiel21:**_ **Thank you so much for your kind words! This being my first fanfic for RWBY, it means a lot B) It's a bit tricky to incorporate the different story elements but I'm glad you are enjoying it :))**

 _ **Matthew998:**_ **/wiggles eyebrows**

 _ **unmei:**_ **Oi! Sleep is important! (but I am sujected to late night/early morning fan fic reading too so.../awkward laugh) And Blake is such a bundle of cuteness, amirite?**

 ** _FoxyFoxation:_ Weeelpp, Imma just keep my mouth shut 'bout all that... for now... **

**Alright! On the the chapter now! :)**

* * *

Chapter 5: Clouded

Curious lilac eyes fixated onto focused amber as Yang charmingly grinned at the raven-haired girl. The blonde switched her position so her front was facing Blake, the right side of her body lying on the floor as she used her metal hand to support her head. She draped her human left hand over her hip, still smiling at Blake. The noirette had to look away from a moment to compose herself. _Does she really… have to pose like that…? I mean… I don't know, I'm not complaining or-_

Blake mentally slapped herself in the face for the third time that day.

"Hmm… myself?" Yang inquired, her left hand mindlessly fidgeting with the strings of her hoodie as she continued, "What would you like to know?"

Blake nervously nibbled her lip, not completely sure what to ask the blonde. She was an introverted book-worm, socializing was - for sure- not her forte. Sure, Blake had many questions to ask but she just wasn't sure how to ask them without appearing nosy. Her thin fingers ran through her midnight-black hair as she curled a strand behind her right human ear.

"What, uh… what do you like to do?" Blake started, but added onto her question as soon as she saw blonde eyebrows quirk, "I mean like- as in hobbies." Yang let out a soft and dragged-out 'ooooh' then tapped her flesh index finger on her chin as she glanced up at the roof of the train cart in thought. "Well, I box. Been doing it since I was 'bout… eight, I'd say. It's a fun pastime… I think my stage name was 'The Gold Dragon' or something along those lines," she paused to giggle softly and then continued, "I just do some underground matches for a couple of bills here and there now. I can't do it professionally anymore…" Yang glanced at her metal arm in minor dismay as Blake's amber eyes looked over also at the mechanical limb. The blonde forced herself to pull her gaze away from it and sat up beside Blake with her legs crossed, rubbing the back of her neck unsurely. She strained a smile as citrine eyes met with violet. Curiosity poured into Blake but decided to dismiss her intrusive thoughts, knowing that Yang's arm could be a sensitive topic to talk about.

"Wow, that's actually… pretty neat. You said since you were eight?" The noirette continued the conversation.

The blonde nodded.

"So that makes you-?"

"Twenty. I'm twenty years old," Yang replied nonchalantly, her face now growing relaxed. She quirked her head to Blake.

"And you?"

"Twenty also."

The boxer grinned at the answer. A familiar silence soon surrounded the two, which made Blake uneasy. She bit her lip. _Wow, Blake. You're hopeless. Is that all you have to say? "Same"? Pretty sure you just killed the conversation. Why was I born this way to be so socially impaired, ugh fuck you_ _introversion_ …

Luckily, Yang spoke up, disrupting the quietness to keep the conversation going, "What about you? What do you like to do?" Blake's eyes glanced at the blonde as she lightly ran a finger over the grooves of her combat boots. "I, uhm… I suppose like to read, mostly the classics though. You know: Poe, Steinbeck, Fitzgerald… Oh, can't forget Lee, How to Kill a Mocking Bird is one of my favorites by far…" The noirette cut herself short, not wanting to geek out in front of the brawler.

There was a small pause before Blake felt a hand clap onto her back, causing her head to snap up in surprise. "Ohhh, hey now, I see! So I got a book-nerd on my hands then, huh?" Yang teased with a wide grin, lightly shaking Blake's shoulder with her metal hand. The raven-haired girl rolled her eyes at the nickname. "Oh, ha _. Ha._ You asked and I answered, so best be happy," she teased back, sass dripping off her words. She felt oddly comfortable enough to joke around with a stranger, which wasn't normal for her at all.

The blonde laughed and smirked at the girl beside her. She retracted her mechanical arm from Blake as she leaned her torso back, using her palms for support. "So, my guess is that you attend a college or something?" Yang spoke, quirking her head, "You seem pretty smart." The noirette peered into lilac and smiled at the blonde's unintentional compliment. _Or maybe intentional?_

Blake found herself biting her lip, "Yeah, I do. I go to Beacon Academy… I'm a first year." Yang furrowed her eyebrows, "First year? You're twenty though. Shouldn't you be a second –maybe even third- year?" The raven-haired girl froze up, citrine eyes fixating on the moving forest outside. "I…" Blake began, clearing her throat while trying to think up an excuse.

It wasn't her choice to be a first year. She was a first year because of her past. She missed her last year of high school because of Adam, who decided for her that it was pointless for her to attend school and forced Blake to focus all her time to help him in his fight against the humans. She was forced to learn how to stay in the shadows and use a knife and gun; skills she wished she didn't have to learn. Adam tried to teach her how to properly use Blake's semblance, but he never could, as he didn't possess the skill to. Blake trained her semblance by herself but made little to no improvements, with Adam always cutting her training off short so that he could teach Blake something he did know how to do. After that horrible night three years ago, she devoted every waking moment of her free time studying for school, reading books at the public library almost every night until the librarians had to kick her out. It took her a good two years for Blake to be able to take the entrance exam and get accepted into Beacon Academy.

 _What was the excuse I told Ruby and Weiss again…?_

"I… I did a victory lap in high school," Blake answered as she looked over to the blonde, who nodded her head, believing the girl's outright lie.

Yang smiled with her eyes agape, "But Beacon Academy, _damn_. You gotta be quite the brainiac to get in there… just like my…" Yang drifted off, her cheery expression seeming to fade. Blake's hidden Faunus ears twitched against her silk bow as she peered at crestfallen violet eyes with worried amber. Yang cleared her throat, her voice serious.

"Listen, Blake. I know this is sudden but… do you- do you by any chance know a girl named Ruby? Erhm, Ruby Rose?"

Blake froze. Her golden eyes widened just a bit as they stared forward at the moving evergreen trees, not daring to look at the blonde. There was a thick silence that coated the air, the sounding 'clunk' of the train moving along the track draining out. The sudden quietness made the blonde think that Blake needed more than a name to answer her question.

"She's a first year too. Pretty short for an eighteen-year-old; has dipped-dyed red hair, silver eyes. Although… she's kinda hard to have a good look at when she's always making heads turn a little too late with that speed of hers…" Yang forced a light chuckle as her lips formed a frown.

 _Why would an underground street fighter want to know about Ruby?_ The thought made the noirette silently question Yang's association with her younger roommate. Her mind darted all over the place with thoughts of the crimsonette. But all she could think up was the image of when she last saw Ruby, her innocent face questioning Blake's crazed older brother her in a quiet but woeful tone…

Blake found herself biting her lower lip again, feeling the blonde's intense gaze on her, waiting for an answer. She twirled her thumbs together, not completely sure what to say. She wanted to learn more about the blonde and talk, and so she guessed that this was somehow still relevant to the conversation.

"I…" Blake breathed, Yang's lilacs still fixated on her, "I do know… _of_ her."

Lie.

Yang suddenly clasped both her hands onto the noirette's shoulders, twisting her torso so that purple peered into amber. The blonde's expression was covered with bewilderment.

"You do?! Seriously?!" Yang's questioning voice boomed at Blake. The raven-haired girl was taken aback at the blonde's tone as she gasped lightly in shock. She didn't completely know who Yang was to Ruby… She had to choose her next words carefully. Just in case.

"Y-yes, I've… seen a girl like that around campus…"

Another lie.

"Oh, so you don't talk to her or anything?"

"No, sorry, I don't…"

Another fucking lie.

Blake was disappointed in herself as false words and statements parted from her lips. She just… Couldn't completely trust Yang yet, as much as she truly wanted to. Blake was never a person to vocalize the many thoughts that occupied her mind, she kept her curiosity to herself. It was something she was fairly good at, hiding in shadows and not getting close to many people.

Silence ensued. Blake continued twiddling her thumbs, looking down at them in sudden interest.

"Ah, don't worry about it. It's fine." Yang's voice seemed dissatisfied but calm nonetheless. She took out her red lighter and began playing with it to keep her hands occupied.

Maybe Blake was wrong, maybe she should have-

"Anyway, if you don't mind my asking," Yang started back up, acting as if that last topic of conversation was never brought up, "What's an obedient university student like yourself doing with a brawling delinquent on a stolen train ride?"

Blake rubbed her clammy hands together awkwardly, her eyes staring at her palms. That's exactly what she _didn't_ want Yang to question but the noirette was already in too deep. She asked to talk so that's what she was going to do. She decided to answer the blonde's question with as little details as possible.

"I-" Blake cleared her dry throat. The brawler looked up at the raven-haired girl, seeing her midnight tassels caress her focused complexion.

"Yang… someone's after me."

Lilac eyes widened as they met with distressed ambers. "W-what do you mean?" Yang gulped, mouth slightly hanging open. Blake blinked and readied herself for her next words. "What I mean is," she paused, her tongue dry, "Someone toxic that I've been running away from for years managed to find me. I- I didn't know what else to do… So I ran… Found you getting knocked around by some guy… then boarded this train without a second thought… I just needed to… go..." Yang didn't interrupt the noirette even once, watching the girl's jittery words escape her lips. Blake brought her knees closer to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Her eyes never left the outside land breezing pass her, the trees and foliage calm under a clouded, cool sky.

A hand gripping Blake's shoulder made the girl perk up her head, her worried amber eyes meeting gentle and pleasant lilac.

"Blake…" Yang began, her soft voice flowing with concern, "I know I'm just some stranger that you just met but I- I want to help you." Blake's head cocked over to the blonde, now fully facing Yang's serious expression as she continued, "I feel like- like I owe you something. Something more than just talking with you. Let me help you."

Blake looked away for a second, chewing her lip, "You don't owe me anything, Yang. I appreciate your offer but I'm not sure _how_ you can help me…" The noirette suddenly stood up and walked farther into the train cart. She held hear arms close to her chest as her back faced the blonde. There was a slight pause before she heard footsteps calmly approach her.

"Yang… please," Blake breathed, making the blonde's hand tense up just inches from the girl's shoulder, "I really am thankful for your concern and your friendliness… but I don't want to cause you problems. You clearly have somewhere you have to be; I don't. Not anymore. When this train stops, wherever that may be, I'm getting off and we'll go our separate ways, okay?"

Blake didn't want those words to leave her dry throat. She had always believed that she was built to be alone, forever in the shadows. She would have never imagined that a thuggish stranger would make her question her own nature. In truth, she never wanted to be alone, it was just better for others if she was. Her brother didn't feel much like company, Blake saw him as more of an empty shell of hatred. It took months to be vaguely comfortable with Ruby and Weiss.

Yang was different.

In a mere forty minutes or so, the blonde managed to make Blake want to learn more about the girl, to talk with her. Even after the noirette pointed a knife right in-between her purple eyes. Yang gave off a sort of energy she had never felt with anyone else. It made Blake interested… but scared. No one else ever had that effect on Blake and it terrified her to bits. She had knocked a man unconscious just to save the girl. She would not have even thought of saving some random stranger that day. Had it been not Yang, she would have just left the person.

 _Leaving her…_

Blake swore she could _feel_ the blonde's dim lilac gaze barring a hole into her back. Now Blake started to regret lying to her about her schooling, about Ruby. But what was she supposed to say when all she could think of when she heard the crimsonette's name was fearful silver eyes?

Blake needed to forget. She knew she would hate herself for the rest of life if she chose to ignore her past but she just _had_ to. The present and future was her top priority now, even if she figured she might have not much of the latter.

A quiet and slightly raspy voice cut through the air.

"If that's what you wanna do, Blake, I won't force you. The last thing I want to do it make you feel uncomfortable. But, just know my offer is always on the table for you, okay?"

Blake rubbed her sweater-clad arms and down-casted her head a bit, not knowing what to say. Timid footsteps started to walk away yet stopped after a couple, Blake's Faunus ears twitched at the sound of something light being placed onto the wooden floor.

"If you need a smoke, I left my lighter near your bag. I'm gonna maybe catch some z's, if you don't mind. I'm all tuckered out and I think we're gonna be here for awhile anyway," Yang stifled a yawn as she dragged her converse-clad feet to a spot farthest from where Blake was standing and plopped her body down to the floor.

After a couple of moments, Blake slowly turned her body, seeing Yang's form resting up against the one of the corners of the cart, her head leaning on the metal wall. Her eyes were closed.

Blake's soft footsteps stridden over to the still open metal door, not disturbing the blonde, and stopped at the edge to breath in the damp, tranquil wind that gently brushed her face. After a moment, she bent down to grab a cigarette out of her bag. Citrine eyes glazed at the red lighter, her hands hesitating. She shook her head once then grabbed the lighter, gripping it in her dainty fingers and stared at it as if it was a foreign object. The noirette bit her lip lightly then lit her cigarette with the tiny flame, popping the cancer stick into her mouth before sitting down against the wall opposite of Yang.

Blake took a long drag before sighing, a narrow line of gray smoke escaping her soft lips. She looked over at Yang, her blonde hair slightly covered her relaxed, angel-like face and her arms comfortably wrapped around her torso as her chest softly heaved up and down. Blake pursed her thin lips in thought.

 _Let her… help me?_

* * *

 **Did someone order some Yangsty Blake? No? Oh well... here you go anyways...**

 **And wwooaahh, can you say 'drama'? Phewwee**

 **ANYWAYS!**

 **Thanks guys for all the recent favs and follows, really makes me happy that more and more people are reading my story and enjoying it!**

 **Also, would you care to make a donation to the Hella-Sinful-Review foundation? It'll only take a minute and you'll be helping a noteworthy cause! B)**

 **With that said, I hope you lovelies have a fab day and I'll peace out till next chap!**

 **(Pssstt, I post my rwby art/edits on my tumblr hella-belladonna so mbby check me out there? thx fam)**


	7. Dusk

**Last chapter's review feedback!**

 _ **unmei96:**_ **Damnit Blake, indeed. And well, she did have reasons to hide it so :)**

 _ **ThePeridotRanger:**_ **Thanks dude, glad you like it! I saw a headcanon of Adam being Blake's older brother a long time ago, I thought it was interesting B)**

 ** _FoxyFoxation:_ Oh lordy lord. Sorry to make ya feel, bud. I don't want to say any spoilers BUT I can assure you, I do have this story planned out and there will be some lovely fluff at some point. That's all I'm gonna say about that. Still happy you want to keep reading though :)**

 _ **Matthew998:**_ **I'm anticipating it too! hehe**

 _ **whyspers:**_ **Thanks dude!**

 **Now that that's out of the way, time to start the chapterrr, legooo!**

* * *

Chapter 6: Dusk

Blake was jerked awake by two stiff hands on her shoulders and a distance shout. Her heavy eyelids slowly blinked open as the long-haired figure in front of her continued to rattle the noirette. Blake licked her dry lips as her dazed and partly-shut amber eyes peered into wide lilacs.

"Blake come on, you gotta wake up!" Yang shouted her whisper, still trying to get the half-awake girl fully conscience, "Wakey-wakey eggs-n-Blakey!"

A dopey groan spilled out of the raven-haired girl's throat as the blonde insisted on shaking her sleepy form until she got a proper response from the girl.

"Yeah, yeah… I'm awake…" Blake slurred, her eyes staring into now less distressed violet eyes. Yang stopped shaking the noirette and opted to rest her comforting human hand on her shoulder. "Good, I'm glad," she smiled slightly before continuing with a focused face, "Listen, the train's breaks went off a little while ago but- but something's off. I know you said you're getting off when this train stops but this isn't a normal, we're not at a proper train station or anything. I think we might have some trouble."

That's when Blake's eyelids flung open and was knocked fully awake. Her body flooded with sudden anxiety as she unconsciously grasped the blonde's forearm. "Y-Yang, what do you mean?" Blake gulped, her heart picking up its pace. _Trouble? What does she mean 'trouble'? Can't I just catch a fucking break today?_

Yang's dead-serious expression reflected onto the noirette, "I think some baddies hijacked the train."

Blake bit her lip, gripping the blonde's hoodie tighter in rising panic. Her breath hitched in her throat and felt her hands become slightly clammy against the heavy fabric she held. Blake opened her mouth to respond but before she could, cold metal suddenly made contact with her lips.

"It'll be fine if we stay quiet and hidden," Yang's whisper assured, her metal index finger shushed Blake's unsaid words. The raven-haired girl slowed her breathing as she nodded with her eyebrows furrowed. She knew all about being unseen and unheard so she thought this could be easily enough. _Maybe I could even impress Yang that I'm more than just some nerdy bookish girl… For fuck's sake, Blake, why are you thinking about something like that right now?! This is serious!_

The noirette gulped down the lump in her throat and pulled away from Yang's arm to shift towards a more viable hiding spot. The blonde followed Blake's lead, tip-toing over to the blind spot corner of the train cart. Yang sidled against the metal construct, and ever so slightly poked her head out to see if anyone was walking. The late evening-almost-night sky made it hard to see but despite that, she still was able to make out a few dark, human outlines. Her body jolted back to her spot beside Blake, her purple eyes wide. Yang pursed her thin lips together and looked over at amber eyes, silently telling Blake there were people outside. Nodding, the noirette focused her attention on listening to the men's footsteps. Her Faunus cat ears twitched against her bow as she heard uneven footsteps, suggesting to Blake that the people were not consistently walking. The blonde that stood to the left of her peered at the concentrated raven-haired girl, but before she could say a word, Blake whispered.

"How many people?"

Yang frowned, "I can't tell, it's too dark."

Blake decided she wanted to see for herself, just to make sure. She switched places with Yang and poked her head out for the smallest of moments then quickly went back to her spot.

"There's three," she said, blinking her amber eyes at the blonde.

Yang quirked an eyebrow, "How did you-?"

Her question was cut off by Blake's soft shushing.

Biting her lip, Blake stood stiff as did Yang for a long second. Her eyes soon enough landed on her knapsack that was slumped against the wall across from her. Opting that it would be best not to leave without it, the noirette began to slowly take a light step forward with an extended arm but she quickly flung her body back as a furious shout scared her back into hiding.

"All these fucking carts are empty! Every damn one of them! We're wasting our fucking time here! Are you sure this is even the right train, lieutenant?!" A man's harsh voice sounded followed by a sharp thump of a study object slamming against the metal exterior of one of the carts.

"Oi, settle down! You're gonna let all of Remnant know we're here, you idiot!" A different man barked, his voice deeper and gruffer than the first, "Grunt, recheck that slip we got from headquarters!"

The two made no noise, and after a moment, a third voice softly spoke out.

"Uhhm… Schnee Dust Company transport train, uhuh… North of Vale, mhm… Nine… Nine o'clock…" The grunt's soft voice drifted off. There was another small silence before the lieutenant's impatient growl cut through the air, "What is it? Spit it out already, ya weasel!"

"Sir… sir, it says here nine o'clock AM _not_ PM…"

A heavy but short pause.

"…What did you just say, grunt?"

Blake's Faunus ears twitched as she leaned in a little closer to the opening of the train cart. Yang clutched the noirette's shoulder, silently telling her to be careful.

"I- I must have misread the message, lieutenant. I'm s-sorry, I didn't- Forgive m-" The grunt was cut off abruptly and was replaced with a painful shriek as the sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed.

"You moron! This is why I don't want fucking newbies tagging along with me, you only weight me down and cause problems!"

Blake gasped lightly as she felt Yang's grip on her shoulder grow tighter. The raven-haired girl cocked her head to look at the blonde and her amber eyes met with concerned, serious lilacs. "Who are these crooks, Blake? What happened? What do you see?" Yang's troubled whisper questioned. Blake turned away for a moment, her head out of the opening. Her eyes dropped to see the third man laying still on the ground as the second man towered over him menacingly, his hand in a tight fist. She squinted her eyes, making out the symbol that was stitched on the front of the man's white-vest uniform.

 _No- No, they can't be-_

Blake cursed under her breath and whipped her head back to face Yang, her whisper distressed. "These- These aren't your everyday bandits…" She took a breath, "T-They're apart of White Fang." The blonde's eyes widened and she clenched her teeth as if anger suddenly pumped through her veins.

"White Fang? Are you fucking kidding me? N-No way. I... I swore if I ever saw any one of those assholes ever again, I would-!" Yang furiously whispered, glaring pass the noirette towards the opening of the train cart. The blonde subconsciously formed her metal hand into a tight iron fist. Blake's expression flushed with worry as she gripped Yang's sleeve, trying to calm down the suddenly pissed-off brawler. _Does she have history with the White Fang? What happened between them and Yang for her to be so angry with them?_

"Yang, listen to me, please. I don't want any trouble. It'll be better to sneak away, we just have to wait for the right-" Blake pleaded the blood-boiling blonde in an anxious whisper. Yang's lilac eyes flashed a crimson tint, not bothering to look at the girl.

"I gotta do something, Blake. Don't worry, it'll only take a minute, tops." Yang shook off the noirette's grasp and intimidatingly marched her way towards the exit. Blake's citrine eyes filled with fear when she saw the blonde hop out of the train with her fists clenched tight. "N-no, wait, Yang!" The raven-haired girl's breath gasped, but she already knew it was too late.

"Hey, jackasses!" Yang shouted harshly, getting the attention of the two White Fang members, "Somethin' the matter?"

The presumed lieutenant, a tall and heavily-built ox of a man, roared back, "And just who the hell are you, bitch?"

Yang slyly grinned and lightly chuckled at the man, inching closer and closer towards the two. _Are you out of your mind, Yang?! These are White Fang members! Not some carefree boxing match!_

"I've been getting called that a lot lately, I hope it doesn't become a trend or anything," Yang scoffed, looking scarily devious. "Boss, I thought this train wasn't transporting people," the first man stated more that questioned. The lieutenant grumbled as an answer and stepped over the third man's unconscious body while rubbing his right fist, getting closer to Yang. The other man, who was shorter and leaner, trailed behind.

"Are you looking for a fight, girly?" The White Fang higher up threatened, slightly adjusting the white mask that covered his entire face. Blake bit her lip, poking her head out further as Yang kept walking towards the men. _This is bad, oh fuck, this is really bad. Damnit!_

Yang rolled both of her sleeves up to her elbows, exposing both her human and metal lower arms as her fingers curled into fists. Blake noticed that Yang had a sleeve tattoo on her outer right forearm. Hyper-realistic dragon scales coated the limb, the orangey-red and golden shade almost glowing in the dusk that surrounded them. If the tattoo was this breath-taking from a distance, Blake wondered how mystic and beautiful it would be to admire up close but she had to shake her head to rid her thoughts, Blake's mind needing to focus on the real concern in front of her.

Yang held her fists in front of her, her body getting into boxing stance. Grinning, she glared at the men with red-tinted lilacs.

"Aha, 'suppose I am, asshat."

"Why, you little-!" The lieutenant yelled, cocking his head over to his sideman, "What are you waiting for, nitwit!? Get her!"

The lean man hesitated for a short moment, but soon obeyed the gruff man's orders, sprinting at Yang with heavy steps. She stood still, her grin getting wider as the man approached her. He threw an unskilled and overpowered punch at Yang's face, but she dodged it with ease, making the White Fang member almost trip over his own feet. The blonde now stood still behind him and waited for her opponent to perk his head up.

"Wow, is that what they teach all of the member at White Fang? Tsk, tsk," Yang nonchalantly provoked. The man shot back up into fighting position and grimaced, showing he was ready to commence the brawl once again. Yang humph-ed and prepared to fight.

The shorter man sent a fury of messy jabs, aiming for Yang's neck and face, though none actually hit her as she just continued to swift dodge every punch thrown at her. She blocked one of the man's hooks with her metal forearm, as a cracking sound echoed. He groaned in pain as he staggered back, cradling his now-broken left fist in his right palm. Seeing the clear opening to the man's torso, Yang hooked her opponent square in the gut, punching the breath right out of him. The man wheezed and dropped to his knees, holding his body up with unbroken hand. Yang casually walked over to the front of the beat-up man, her blood-shot eyes peering down into the two eye slits of the White Fang mask he wore.

"I'd warn you to be more careful next time, but I don't think I'll be seeing you again," She smugly stated and without waiting for a reply from the man, she kneed him directly underneath his jaw with an audible crack, his body flopping to the ground unconscious. Yang exhaled and cracked the joints of her knuckles.

Blake had to retrieve her jaw from the floor. _That was… amazing. She makes it seem like that was nothing!_ The noirette's amber eyes fell onto the gruff White Fang lieutenant, who seemed to be getting angrier and angrier as each second passed. It may have been nothing for Yang to knock out the White Fan grunt but facing the lieutenant one v one was an entirely different story. Knowing this, Blake took this time to quickly grab and slip on her knapsack; she watched in slience.

"Round two?" Yang questioned mischievously with a smirk, her elbows bent and hands slightly extended in front of her, suggesting to fist fight. The lieutenant grunted and, without a second thought, darted at the blonde, "Why, you motherfucking whore!"

The heavy-built man opted to first lead on with a low and powerful kick towards Yang's shins. Being a light one on her feet, she hoping over the foot with no problem, making a soft "humph" sound as she jumped. The man came back around with a swinging fist aimed for the blonde's face but she, again, dodged it successfully by ducking. As Yang was close to the ground, she shot an iron fist followed by her human one into the man's gut. The man inched back slightly from the two consecutive hits which allowed the twenty-year-old girl to shuffle back to space herself from the man at a comfortable distance. The two stared at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move.

"Is that all you got, worthless amputated bitch?!" The White Fang lieutenant bellowed and deeply chuckled.

The dusk air grew heavy and thick. Blake held her breath as she shifted her feet towards the entrance of the train cart. _While they're distracted I can just-_

"…What did you just call me?" Yang bit back, disgust dripping down her tongue.

Blake _felt_ the lieutenant evilly grin from behind his mask.

"I assure you that a White Fang never forgets! And I'm sure you haven't forgotten what happened either. But just to remind you: you and your pack of hoodlums took our stuff, so we took something to be even with ya," The man barked, pointing to Yang's prosthetic metal arm, "You've been holding that grudge for way too long now!"

Yang's fists tightened into a white-knuckle grip, she tilted her head downwards and closed her eyes, her breath heavy. When she opened her eyelids, her once-lilac eyes were now blood-shot crimson.

"Shut up, shut up, shut the _fuck_ up!" The blonde roared, her legs breaking into a mad sprint towards the lieutenant. It seemed like she'd gone berserk in an instant, as if her once-clear mind was replaced with thoughts of a blood-thirsty dragon.

The huge man just stood steady on his ground, ready to endure the girl's impact. When Yang was close enough, she threw a vigorous hook with her metal hand towards the man's gut. Before she was able to make contact, the man pulled his torso back, making Yang slightly stumble. She recovered quickly, her teeth clenched into a grim frown of hatred.

 _I've… I've seen that expression before… from my- my…_

 _Fire. Suffering. Death._

Thoughts of flames burned into Blake's head as she was having a hard time concentrating her mind shifted from reality and imagination. In one moment, it was the blonde stranger throwing punches at a gruff man in white; and in the next, it was a nameless human weakly defending himself from a murderous, red-haired bull Faunus she called her brother.

 _Adam let out an annoyed and distasted grunt as the ruthless flames behind him grew larger and larger by the second. The sounds of painful screams flowed through the night air, some being drowned out by the sound of bullets or echoing louder before being abruptly cut off. Blake's disheveled and dirtied form crouched behind a lush bush that was not yet a victim to the inferno. Terrified amber eyes were unable to break away from the scene that lay before her._

" _Weak and powerless. Who do you think you humans are?!" Adam growled before grabbing the beaten-up middle-aged man by the collar of his shirt. He punched the man's face while her limbs hung lifeless from his body as if he was a ragdoll._

" _What? Something wrong? Don't you want to call me all those slurs you used against us Faunus?!" Adam shook the man's crippled body. When the man only let out a light cough, the long coat-clad Faunus roughly pushed the man up against a nearby tree. The intense fire continued to scorch the once-tranquil town as Adam withdrew a small, silver dagger and placed it over the man's bruised neck. Blake's cat ears picked up a low chuckle emanating from her crazed brother. He pushed the dagger's blade deeper and deeper into the man's neck, his smirk growing wide. Blake's liquid-gold eyes filled with horror as her entire body shook, hot tears rolling down her cheeks as she watched the dismay that happened before her._

" _Ah, it's always fun to-"_

"-Kill a human!"

Blake's mind flashed back to reality, blinking away the newly-formed tears that distorted her view. Her ambers stared at a White Fang member holding up a blonde girl against the metal construct of a train cart. Yang's body fought back weakly, restricted groans and pants escaping her lips.

"…B-Blake… p-please… hel-h…"

The noirette's Faunus ears twitched against her bow as she perked her head up, eyebrows furrowed. _Did she just… call my name?_

It was spontaneous; Blake did it on mere instinct. Her clouded thoughts floated away as she forced herself to launch out of the bush she was hiding behind. Her light but nimbly feet dashed towards the man's back, swift fingers grabbing and flicking out her pocket blade. Yang's lungs couldn't take the lack of air much longer.

Blake lunged a foot towards the back of the man's knees as the surprise kick made the man kneel on the grass, letting go of the blonde. The girl's form fell beside the train cart roughly as she struggled to take in sharp breaths of air. Before the man even realized what was going on, Blake was already one step ahead and struck his temple with the handle of her knife. Knowing one blow wouldn't knock him out, she kept striking the side of the lieutenant's head until his heavy body seeped into unconscious.

Serious and slightly dazed gold eyes met with wide, stunned lilacs.

"D-damm, Blake, you- you saved me again… you're-" Yang managed to state between deep and raspy breaths.

Blake flicked her blade back and put away her dagger into her knapsack. She held out her right arm towards the blonde as she grabbed the noirette's forearm to prop herself back onto her feet.

"Come on, let's get out of here. More of them might come." The raven-haired girl said, hesitantly letting go of Yang's human arm to turn away and walk a couple of paces forward.

 _"…'Let's'?"_

Blake knew the blonde was going to question that part of her statement. Rubbing her face once to get rid of her worried thoughts, the noirette twisted her torso to face a pale, confused expression.

Blake's bottom half still facing towards the dark forest, she held out an open palm for Yang and smirked.

"I've saved your life _twice_ now. You owe me big time and I'm not leaving you until I'm satisfied."

Yang's expression shifted from bewilderment to amusement as she flashed a dorky grin.

* * *

 **/dramatic trumpets sounds, mmhm I wonder what's gonna go down between our bees, hmm...**

 **This one was a tough one to write. It was mostly the action (which wasn't a lot but shhhh-) because i'm not to experience in writing that sort of stuff.**

 **Hell, this fic is one of my first so well, I mean...**

 **ANYWAYS!**

 **Thanks to all the fab-asses who fav'd and followed, glad y'all are interested!**

 **And also Blake told me to tell you to review. She knows how much they mean to m-**

Blake busts through the door to the author's bedroom, clearly pissed off, "I _did not_ say that."

Hella looks up at the noirette in shock, fingers frozen above the keyboard.

"U-uhm w-well you see, I just really want, ya know-"

The noirette rolls her eyes and places her right hand on her hip. She's holding a can of half-eaten tuna in her left. Hella's gaze lands on the tin as she furrows her eyebrows.

"What?" Blake asks, her expression cold-stone.

"Are you..." Hella starts, pointing to the canned tuna in girl's hand, "Are you eating tuna fish?"

Blake shifts uncomfortably, "...Yeah?"

" _My_ tuna fish? The _last_ can that was in the pantry?"

The author's tone is sharp and dead-serious. The Faunus bites her lip.

"...Maybe?"

Hella lets out an audible grumble and attempts to calm herself, "Okay listen. I'll let you have the rest of _my_ tuna if you tell the lovely readers to review."

Blake quirks an eyebrow.

"And if I don't?"

"I delete you from the story AND tell Yang you've been stealing her socks and hiding them under your bed."

The noirette's amber eyes widen, "How did you-? Are you manipulating me?"

Hella smirks, "...Maybe?"

"Ugh _, fine,"_ Blake clicks her tongue in annoyance, "Feel free to quote me on this, because I'm not saying it again."

The author readies her fingers to type.

 **"Please review if you can because it makes Hella happy to read your guys' thoughts. Also, none of you better NOT tell Yang about the sock thing."**

"Thanks Blakey!" Hella says, as Blake hums and leaves the room with a mouth-full of tuna, annoyed but content because of the fish.

 **Okay I got a little carried away there but yeah TLDR: reviews are nice :)**

 **Looks like that's all, so for now, I'll peace out till next chap! B)**

 **(also follow mah tumbls i post rwby shit at hella-belladonna)**


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